Social media paper
docx
keyboard_arrow_up
School
Broward College *
*We aren’t endorsed by this school
Course
3471
Subject
Communications
Date
Apr 3, 2024
Type
docx
Pages
6
Uploaded by DoctorTitaniumHippopotamus6
1
Social Media's Impact on Communication
Nicolle Monnott
Department of Communication, Florida International University COM 3471: Social Media's Impact on Communication Professor Ebanks April 18
th
, 2023
2
Social Media's Impact on Communication
Communication has been an asset in our lives since the beginning of time. Whether it is verbal, nonverbal, through symbols, or signals, information is exchanged regardless. In the past few decades, communication has been advanced due to the rise of the internet and social media. The internet is a communication book. It is our contention that the internet is a communication tool. It allows us to perform many functions in our human lives. It is the global network of networks. (Westerman, 2016, pg. 17) The internet became a public domain on April 30, 1993, by
a computer scientist known as Tim Berners- Lee. He outlined a plan for a network in 1989 and developed it over the next years. The computer he used, a NeXT desktop, became the world’s first internet server. Originally called Mesh, the browser that he dubbed WorldWideWeb became
the first royalty-free, easy-to-use means of browsing the emerging information network that developed into the internet as we know it today. (History editors, 2020) Since then, people from all over the world have been able to send emails to family members, co- workers, friends, etc. This has been a convivence since it has made communication easier and consistent within seconds. Especially when it comes to work environments using upward and downward communication. Upward communication is the process of information flowing from the lower levels to a higher level of a hierarchy. Whereas downward communication is sending messages vertically to the bottom of an organization hierarchy.
3
Interpersonal skills are what we use every day when we interact and communicate with others. Listening and processing information from an individual or a group is a huge part of this skill. It is also a way of being aware and respectful of others as well. Digital technology and social networks have affected our social and interpersonal skills for quite some time now. The use of social networks has been a blessing and a curse. It has been a blessing when it comes to having the only opportunity to connect with others in a global pandemic. Due to COVID-19 shutting down the world for a year, everyone relied on social networks to remain in contact with one another. Hangouts would turn into calls with friends through facetime, school became zoom meetings, and work turned into staying at home on your laptop all day. Thankfully, we remained in contact with our family and loved ones through the pandemic due to the great advantage of the
internet and social media. In recent decades, social life includes technology-mediated communication, which allows people to maintain and expand their social networks despite physical distance (Lieberman & Schroeder, 2020). Pre-pandemic research suggests that communication via video, phone, and text is associated with better wellbeing, including reduced risk of loneliness (Teo et al., 2019), increased subjective wellbeing (Ahn & Shin, 2013), and reduced negative mood (
Sacco & Ismail, 2014). Now it has become a negative which affects our
social and interpersonal skills as social media has become the biggest communication platform worldwide. There are friend relationships being formed everyday through Instagram, twitter, Facebook, TikTok and more. However, people are lacking face to face interactions and are forgetting how to talk to someone in person.
Your preview ends here
Eager to read complete document? Join bartleby learn and gain access to the full version
- Access to all documents
- Unlimited textbook solutions
- 24/7 expert homework help
4
Even knowing how to act with someone is being forgotten. Spending too much time on social media makes you lose sense of how to carry a conversation and lose mannerisms as it is not being practiced daily. Social media has brought many benefits to business owners allowing them to expand their business and letting it reach to a niche. There have been content creators that have a huge following and have brought businesses or brands to become popular by leaving a helpful review or even posting their products! Social media has brought many people together as a social community, yet it has also brought loneliness. The platform has become such a competitive game in life that posts are now your next vacation, or your next romantic relationship. This becomes an unrealistic standard of pacing in life, and it has created an alternative reality of only posting “good” things. People compare themselves to what they see on social media getting the most likes or the “beauty standard’ of modern society. This is mentally abusing since filters and photoshop exist in most of these posts. It is making us less social and genuine as many people are shy to talk to others. They would rather send a text message, call, or even send a direct message on Instagram than meet for a coffee in person. With this comfortability, it can damage social cues and awareness of connecting with people. At the end of
the day, we are meant to connect with others and bond with interactions. Kids are becoming less active physically and more reliant on video games. The parks are empty, and kids are not playing
with toys anymore. They play games on tablets, and this is harmful when they spend too much time on it. I believe if we continue to spend too much time on social networks and social media, then we will lose our sense of connecting with others in person. This will result in diminishing basic human social and behavioral skills.
5
Social networks and digital communication will continue to have their advantages however it will lose the essence of forming friendships with a simple conversation in person. It is like living in a virtual world. I fear that many employers will forget how to interact with one another. It is good to have a balance between digital communication and face to face communication. We all collectively should limit social networks being the only way to have a conversation with others.
6
References Westerman, D. K., Bowman, N. D., & Lachlan, K. A. (1970, January 1). Introduction to mediated communication (2019 edition)
. Open Library. Retrieved April 18, 2023, from https://openlibrary.org/books/OL37978542M/Introduction_to_Mediated_Communication
A&E Television Networks. (n.d.). World wide web (WWW) launches in the public domain
. History.com. Retrieved April 18, 2023, from https://www.history.com/this-day-in-
history/world-wide-web-launches-in-public-domain
Sun, R., Rieble, C., Liu, Y., & Sauter, D. (2022, July 27). Connected despite lockdown: The role of Social Interactions and social media use in wellbeing
. University of California Press. Retrieved April 18, 2023, from https://online.ucpress.edu/collabra/article/8/1/37061/189892/Connected-Despite-
Lockdown-The-Role-of-Social
Your preview ends here
Eager to read complete document? Join bartleby learn and gain access to the full version
- Access to all documents
- Unlimited textbook solutions
- 24/7 expert homework help